I don’t think so. When I was a kid I was very curious. I wasn’t malicious or a bad kid, I was just very curious about things, and school at the time didn’t hold it for me because I was too much in love with my guitar. Looking back on it, I was an idiot to drop out, because school was a breeze and all my friends were there. Then I had to deal with real life and paying bills and all that.
What I wanted the most was to play the guitar. Rock’n’roll, like Elvis Costello and The Clash, Squeeze. And then we moved on . . . the last band I was in was called the Rock City Angels. They had a record out and I have a song on it, like Muddy Waters meets the Sex Pistols. Raunchy blues, noises, feedback. I did some singing, but mostly background singing. I never really fancied myself much as a singer. I preferred to stand in the background and just play.
I still play, and it was great doing Cry-Baby because Iggy Pop played my stepfather. Iggy and I got to play together a lot. We’d sit down and come up with a few grooves and just play. Iggy has always been one of my heroes back from the seventies.
I was living in LA with the band and I met Nic (actor Nicolas Cage) one night and we became friends and started hanging out. We became very close and he told me that I should be an actor. So I met his agent and he sent me to read for director Wes Craven on A Nightmare on Elm Street. And five hours later I got that phone call.
Acting had never crossed my mind before. I’m not really the most outgoing person in the world. I’m a little bit shy and I never really liked being the center of attention, and I don’t like crowds. Elm Street was sort of a trial by fire. Then I started studying, taking classes and reading books.
The Essential Information
1. He was born in Owensboro, Kentucky on June 9, 1963.
2. He is a Gemini, the star sign of the twins.
3. He was married to actress Lori Anne Allison and has been engaged three times: to actresses Jennifer Grey and Sherilyn Fenn (from Twin Peaks), and presently to Winona Ryder.
4. Johnny has three tattoos: one with his mother’s name, Betty Sue, one with an Indian’s head, in honor of his Cherokee blood, and one bearing the words “Winona Forever”.
5. Johnny has appeared in the TV shows Hotel, Lady Blue and 21 Jump Street, and a telemovie called Slow Burn.
6. He once admitted his idol is Elvis Presley.
7. Johnny’s favorite movie is Hairspray, directed by his Cry-Baby boss John Waters.
8. He has brown hair, brown eyes and stands at 180 cm.
9. Johnny has played in a number of groups including Rock City Angels, The Kids, Zaphyre, and The Bad Boys.
10. Winona and Johnny met at a hotel in LA where he stayed on his weekends off from 21 Jump Street.
11. Johnny’s favorite actors are Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, and James Dean.
12. Johnny has exactly the same name as his father, John Christopher Depp.
13. He dropped out of high school at 16 and wasn’t allowed back in.
14. His sister owns a hairdressing salon called Deppity Doo.
15. He filmed a nude scene in the movie Private Resort!
16. He has a fear of circus clowns.
17. His favorite sport is karate.
18. The movies he has appeared in so far are: A Nightmare on Elm Street, Private Resort, Platoon, Cry-Baby and Edward Scissorhands.
19. Prior to becoming an actor, Johnny worked as a T-shirt printer and pen salesman among other things.
20. His favorite meal is a burger and chips.
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